It is stated in Sahih al-Bukhari that 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar used to trim from his beard what was less than a handful, and it is authentic from him that he is the narrator of the hadith regarding leaving the beard to grow.

The questioner : It is stated in Sahih al-Bukhari that 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar used to trim from his beard what was less than a handful, and it is authentic from him that he is the narrator of the hadith regarding leaving the beard to grow. It is known in the language that "leaving to grow" (i'fa) means leaving it as is. Do we want to reconcile these actions and words?

The Shaykh : There is no contradiction between this and that, because "leaving to grow" (i'fa) is as I mentioned, but this "leaving to grow" is not a hidden matter that we simply assert; rather, it is a matter observed from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). The witness sees what the absent one does not see. That is, 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar, who narrated the hadith from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) , undoubtedly lived with the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) for many years and saw him. He saw whether he used to trim or not. What does the Muslim who knows the biography of 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar and his eagerness to adhere to the Sunnah imagine? He adhered to the Sunnah to the extent that he held fast to the customary Sunnah. We have explained to you at times the difference between the devotional Sunnah and the customary Sunnah. He (may Allah be pleased with him) would perform actions that attracted attention and even required forbidding evil, such as when he was seen one day circling his camel around a place. He was asked about the reason, and he said, "I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) doing that." He was seen intentionally urinating at a tree. He was asked about that, and he said, "I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) do that." These are matters in which it does not appear at all that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) intended to draw near to Allah; rather, the circumstances necessitated it. But 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar's love for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) and his emulation of him led him to emulate him completely, even in customary matters. Perhaps he or another of the Companions was seen unbuttoning his shirt. He was asked about that, and he said, "I saw the Messenger of Allah do that." The Messenger of Allah did that because he felt heat and wanted to relieve himself a little. But this does not mean that this is worship; rather, it is for a need. When the need arises, he unbuttons the shirt; when the need for fastening it arises, he fastens it. So, if a person is of this stature in his eagerness to follow the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), even in customary matters, do we imagine that he would contradict the absolute command of the Prophet in his saying , while he sees the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) morning and evening, night and day, not trimming from his beard what is less than a handful? This is the farthest thing from such a man, who is unique in his eagerness to follow the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) with an eagerness that not even his father, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, shares with him. In fact, his father contradicted him, and we see that his contradiction of him is the correct view. 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), on one of his journeys, found people who had stopped at a campsite and were taking a path to the right or left. Something caught his attention and drew his eye. He asked, "Where are these people going?" It was said to him, "There is a prayer place where the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) prayed." He said (may Allah be pleased with him), and this is from the precision of 'Umar's knowledge: "O people, if prayer overtakes you in any of these places, let you pray, for only those before you were destroyed by following the traces of their prophets". "Only those before you were destroyed by following the traces of their prophets." He forbade these people who were intentionally taking a path that was not their path to Mecca, but rather a side path leading to a prayer place where it was established that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) prayed. He prayed there because he stopped at a campsite there and the time for prayer came, so he prayed. He did not intend to pray there. So why are you intentionally going there? This is extremism in religion. So he said (may Allah be pleased with him): "Do not do that. If prayer overtakes you in any of these places, let you pray, and otherwise, let you depart. For only those before you were destroyed by following the traces of their prophets". This is 'Umar. As for his son, he used to follow the traces of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) exactly, step by step. A great Companion like this hears with his own ears the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) , and then sees the Messenger, as we said earlier, day and night, not trimming. I assert that it is impossible for someone like him to contradict his Prophet, because he contradicts him in his command. If he agrees with him in what has no command, in what is his custom and not his worship, how would he contradict him in what is worship? This is the farthest thing from the truth. Therefore, many of the Companions and the Successors joined 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar in what he did. Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari narrated in his Tafsir many reports that agree with what was mentioned earlier regarding 'Umar trimming from his beard what was less than a handful. 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar's mind was focused on recalling a report from the noble reports that have not yet appeared in the world of publications. Al-Hafiz Abu Bakr al-Bayhaqi narrated in his book *Shu'ab al-Iman* from Ibrahim ibn Yazid al-Nakha'i, who was a Successor and a great jurist, that the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) used to trim from their beards. So, if we look at this group of reports, we return to a rule that I have repeated to the ears of some students, and it is very important: every general text that contains many parts, if a part of this general text has not been acted upon, then we should not use this general text as evidence for this specific part, as long as the action has not been carried out on it, especially if it is established that the action was carried out on the opposite of it. Now, here is an important text. No matter how long it is, may Allah bless it and drag it to the ground. This is the meaning of: what is the general text? "And leave the beards to grow." Was the action carried out on this? We know that many scholars, past and present, say that it is obligatory to act on the generality of the text and it is not permissible to trim from the beard at all, acting on the generality. So we ask, based on this rule that my soul has settled upon and my chest has opened to: Has the action been carried out on this absolute generality? Those who say that it is not permissible to contradict this text must establish that the action has been carried out on it. In my opinion, without that, it is spinning the spindle (futile effort). In fact, the action was carried out on the opposite of it. And you have just heard some of the reports. The first is what al-Bukhari narrated as a suspended hadith. The second is what Ibn Jarir al-Tabari narrated as a connected hadith from a group, including 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar, Abu Hurayrah, and Mujahid from the great Successors and famous exegetes, and among them is Ibrahim ibn Yazid al-Nakha'i, who transmitted from the Companions that they used to trim from their beards. These reports should not be neglected simply because we understand the generality of the text. This part of it is what has not been acted upon. And this is sufficient, and praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. So depart with guidance.